Taken 2

Posted
Thursday, October 11, 2012 5:15 pm

Don Fowler

(More kidnapping adventures)

Liam Neeson as Bryan Mills, retired CIA agent, is back in a sequel that looks a lot like the first one, when his daughter was kidnapped and he had to come to the rescue. This time he and his ex-wife (Famke Janssen) are kidnapped and their daughter (Maggie Grace) has to come to their rescue.

Mills killed one of the evil Albanian kidnappers’ sons in the first movie, and the bad guy is seeking revenge. Mills uses his hidden phone to contact his daughter and tell her his location, which he figures out by listening to sounds under his hood. It's all a bit far-fetched, as the timid daughter rises to the occasion.

Then the ex-wife gets kidnapped and father and daughter have to come to the rescue, accomplishing unbelievable feats. Kim, who can't pass her driving test, drives at high speeds through narrow streets, dodging bullets, police cars and the bad guys. They run over rooftops, dive through windows, escape from chains and, of course, win their freedom.

It is all very familiar and outlandish. There is a clever ending during the patented showdown between good guy and bad guy, but even that is easy to see coming. The ending leaves it wide open for "Taken 3.” Enough already!